Kobe Bryant: "I Don't Take Charges"

Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant said Tuesday that he doesn’t take charges to avoid sustaining injuries, according to ESPN.com.

"We got a couple guys that take charges, but for the most part, the one guy that took a charge is now playing in Oklahoma," Bryant said after practice Tuesday, according to ESPN. "I don't take charges. Metta [World Peace] don't take charges. Steve [Blake] will take a charge every now and then, but most everybody else just stands up and plays."

He continued: "I learned from my predecessors," Bryant said. "[Scottie] Pippen had a [messed] up back taking charges. [Larry] Bird had a [messed] up back taking charges. I said, 'I'm not taking charges.' I figured that ... out at an early age….I've seen Michael [Jordan] not take one ... charge and he's healthy his whole career and the same thing with Magic [Johnson]," Bryant said. "I might not be the smartest guy in the room, but I can figure that ... out."

Bryant, 33, estimated that he’s taken one charge in the last two seasons and it was because “[he] couldn’t get out of the way,” according to ESPN.

The Lakers forced just four turnovers in Monday’s loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, who averaged 16.35 turnovers per game in the regular season. NBA Commissioner David Stern made news Sunday when he decried the “flopping” going on in the league, according to ESPN.
"I think it's time to look at [flopping] in a more serious way," Stern said Sunday, "because it's only designed to fool the referee. It's not a legitimate play in my judgment. I recognize if there's contact [you] move a little bit, but some of this is acting. We should give out Oscars rather than MVP trophies."

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